Consumption of fruits, vegetables declines in Ghana — Study
A study conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has revealed a drastic decline in the consumption of fruits and vegetables in Ghana. According to the research, the national average consumption of fruits and vegetables daily was far below the World Health Organisation’s (WHO’s) recommended rate.
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Currently, an average Ghanaian consumes 1.5 per cent portion of fruits and 2.3 per cent portion of vegetables daily as against the WHO requirement of four to six per cent per day.
Diseases
Presenting the findings at a workshop in Accra yesterday, one of the researchers, who is a lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Dr Francis Appiah, said the situation had led to high incidence of non-communicable diseases, particularly among the youth.
He said unless urgent measures were put in place to remedy the situation, the nation would risk losing its youth to poor health conditions.
Despite the extensive promotion of fruit and vegetable consumption, worldwide per capita consumption is estimated to be 20 to 50 per cent short of the minimum daily recommended level of 400 grams, or five 80-gram portions a day.
Low intake of fruit and vegetables is among the top 10 risk factors for mortality in the world. According to the Global Burden of Disease Study, worldwide, 3.4 million deaths can be attributed to low consumption of fruits and 1.8 million of diets low in vegetables.
Study
The study also revealed that the consumption of fruits and vegetable was high among men and low among women. While men’s consumption rate hovered around 37 per cent, that of women was 30 per cent.
Regarding the findings on the consumption of fruits, mango, orange and water melon were the top three fruits many Ghanaians preferred.
Outlining the reasons for the decline in the consumption of fruits and vegetables, Dr Appiah said the living conditions of people coupled with the high cost of fruits and vegetables were some of the reasons that accounted for its low consumption.
“We realised that people do not think about the consumption of fruits because they are always concerned with staples which will offer immediate benefits,” he said.
Dr Appiah said the condition of fruits and vegetables in Ghana also contributed to the decline, adding; “Most people are scared of consuming them because some of the water they use to grow them are contaminated as a result of the activities of ‘galamsey’.”
He said although 50 per cent of Ghanaians knew the benefits of fruits and vegetables, “they do not have money to buy them, thereby affecting their regular intake.”
Promotion
An Agriculture Officer at FAO Ghana Office, Ms Makiko Taguchi, said since 2003, her organisation and the WHO had been leading a global initiative on the promotion of fruits and vegetable for health.
“This initiative is aimed at raising awareness to boost fruit and vegetable production and consumption to improve the health of the people and also increase farmer’s incomes. Since then, regional workshops have been organised to bring all stakeholders together,” she stated.
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, in a speech read on his behalf, stressed on government’s commitment to address challenges in the sector.
He said the government’s agenda of ‘Planting for Food and Jobs’ would also take into consideration the consumption of fruits and vegetables.